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Jakartans juggle work and worship during Ramadhan
Jakartaâs working Muslims are having to rearrange their busy schedules to make time for the rituals of the Ramadhan fasting month, which started on Thursday
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J
akarta's working Muslims are having to rearrange their busy schedules to make time for the rituals of the Ramadhan fasting month, which started on Thursday.
Guntur, 33, an employee of a private company in the Thamrin area of Central Jakarta, complained that his tight work schedule left him unable to increase the frequency and quality of his religious rituals.
'I am trying to perfect my five daily prayers this month. But I don't have time to recite the Koran. I leave for work at 5 a.m. every morning, and I go home at 9 p.m. It's hard for me to make the time,' he told The Jakarta Post on Thursday.
Rewards for good deeds are said to by multiplied during the holy month. Muslims are as such urged to improve the quality and the frequency of their religious rituals and to do more good deeds.
Another office worker Ari, 32, said that he aimed to complete the five daily prayers, which he often failed to do at other times of the year.
'I haven't made a lot of plans [to improve my religious rituals]. But I try to pray five times a day, because in other months I usually skip prayers because of work,' he said.
However, Ocfa, 38, an employee at a property company, rejected the excuse of a lack of time for religious rituals during Ramadhan, saying he aimed to recite the Koran everyday during the month despite his schedule.
'I want to read at least a couple of verses of the Koran everyday in this fasting month, to know what it means and to understand the purpose of it. I don't believe that I don't have the time. I can always make time, even just five to 10 minutes,' he said.
Indonesia is home to the largest number of Muslims in the world, encompassing approximately 207 million of the total 250 million population. (fsu/dmr)(+++)
